me with wonder, had bloomed into a
booming, ugly thing, and I wanted out.
And then it was gone. All of it.
The heat, the presence, the sick feeling in my stomach. It disappeared the way
worry evaporates when you see that a loved one you’d been fretting over is
safe. I peeled my eyes open slowly, afraid that my other senses were playing a
trick on me, and that the floating images would still be there. But they were
not. The room had returned to its former state, the blue cloud of magic gone,
only strengthening sunlight left in its place.
First I looked over at Tommy,
whose normally perfect complexion had gone a little gray, fine beads of sweat
broken out across his brow. I looked over at Surah, who was now leaning back
against the table where she had performed her work, controlling her harsh
breathing with some effort. She stared back at me, her purple eyes having lost
the hatred as though it had never been, and replaced it with a double order of
sorrow.
The Sorceress did not speak the
thought, nor did I reach into her mind to retrieve it, but it seemed to hang in
the air between our gazes. She had read the flier as surely as I had, had read
the words the Sorcerer has been stopped, so you needn’t fear him , and
she knew as well as I did that her brother was dead.
What’s more, a good portion of an
entire city had been slaughtered.
Heads on spikes, and King William
was blaming me. And Alexa. Who just happened to be returning from the walk I’d
sent her on, opening the door to the small room to find us sitting there with
I-don’t-know-what kinds of looks on our faces.
And an equally messed-up look on
her own.
Alexa
“What happened?” I asked,
stepping into the room and leaving Kayden to shut the door behind us.
It was Surah who answered me, and
I was surprised to hear that there was no malice underlining her soft tone. “I
will be going now,” she said. “I hope you understand that this matter was not
personal.”
She moved toward the door, and I
stepped in front of her. “Wait, what? Where are you going?” I glanced at Nelly
over the Sorceress’s cloaked shoulder. “What happened?” I repeated.
Surah regarded me with forced
patience. “Your sister can explain,” she said, stepping around me.
I moved to block her again, and a
warning look flashed behind her eyes. “Get out of my way, Sun Warrior.”
I narrowed my eyes, my own
patience wearing thin. “Like hell,” I said. “You storm in here accusing us of
murder and now you think you can just up and leave? What happened to your
vendetta? You all of a sudden have somewhere better to be?”
The Sorceress tilted her head.
“As a matter of fact, I do. I have a King to kill.”
My brow furrowed and I looked
over at Nelly again–her face so drawn and pale–wondering how she had convinced
Surah of our innocence and the King’s guilt in under an hour. Nelly’s voice was
small when she spoke. “Then we want the same thing, Surah,” she said. “Stay. We
can help each other.”
Surah turned her head and
regarded my sister with more sympathy that I would have expected. “No,” she
said. “I’m afraid we do not want the same thing. You wish to overthrow an
empire, while I want only to kill a single man.” She paused. “And I work best
alone.”
I didn’t move from my position in
front of her, and her mouth quirked up in amusement. My left eye twitched. “The
King is mine,” I said, feeling the truth of the words so very deep in my soul.
Surah smirked. “Well, then I
guess the race in on,” she said. “Good luck to you, Sun Warrior.” She glanced
back at Nelly. “And you.” And then she vanished.
Literally. Vanished. I stood
staring at the spot where she had been, blinking like a cartoon character. I
would have punched and kicked pointlessly at the air there if there had not
been other people in the room. No need to look as insane as I felt.
I turned on my sister. “What
happened?” I asked, for what felt like the
booming, ugly thing, and I wanted out.
And then it was gone. All of it.
The heat, the presence, the sick feeling in my stomach. It disappeared the way
worry evaporates when you see that a loved one you’d been fretting over is
safe. I peeled my eyes open slowly, afraid that my other senses were playing a
trick on me, and that the floating images would still be there. But they were
not. The room had returned to its former state, the blue cloud of magic gone,
only strengthening sunlight left in its place.
First I looked over at Tommy,
whose normally perfect complexion had gone a little gray, fine beads of sweat
broken out across his brow. I looked over at Surah, who was now leaning back
against the table where she had performed her work, controlling her harsh
breathing with some effort. She stared back at me, her purple eyes having lost
the hatred as though it had never been, and replaced it with a double order of
sorrow.
The Sorceress did not speak the
thought, nor did I reach into her mind to retrieve it, but it seemed to hang in
the air between our gazes. She had read the flier as surely as I had, had read
the words the Sorcerer has been stopped, so you needn’t fear him , and
she knew as well as I did that her brother was dead.
What’s more, a good portion of an
entire city had been slaughtered.
Heads on spikes, and King William
was blaming me. And Alexa. Who just happened to be returning from the walk I’d
sent her on, opening the door to the small room to find us sitting there with
I-don’t-know-what kinds of looks on our faces.
And an equally messed-up look on
her own.
Alexa
“What happened?” I asked,
stepping into the room and leaving Kayden to shut the door behind us.
It was Surah who answered me, and
I was surprised to hear that there was no malice underlining her soft tone. “I
will be going now,” she said. “I hope you understand that this matter was not
personal.”
She moved toward the door, and I
stepped in front of her. “Wait, what? Where are you going?” I glanced at Nelly
over the Sorceress’s cloaked shoulder. “What happened?” I repeated.
Surah regarded me with forced
patience. “Your sister can explain,” she said, stepping around me.
I moved to block her again, and a
warning look flashed behind her eyes. “Get out of my way, Sun Warrior.”
I narrowed my eyes, my own
patience wearing thin. “Like hell,” I said. “You storm in here accusing us of
murder and now you think you can just up and leave? What happened to your
vendetta? You all of a sudden have somewhere better to be?”
The Sorceress tilted her head.
“As a matter of fact, I do. I have a King to kill.”
My brow furrowed and I looked
over at Nelly again–her face so drawn and pale–wondering how she had convinced
Surah of our innocence and the King’s guilt in under an hour. Nelly’s voice was
small when she spoke. “Then we want the same thing, Surah,” she said. “Stay. We
can help each other.”
Surah turned her head and
regarded my sister with more sympathy that I would have expected. “No,” she
said. “I’m afraid we do not want the same thing. You wish to overthrow an
empire, while I want only to kill a single man.” She paused. “And I work best
alone.”
I didn’t move from my position in
front of her, and her mouth quirked up in amusement. My left eye twitched. “The
King is mine,” I said, feeling the truth of the words so very deep in my soul.
Surah smirked. “Well, then I
guess the race in on,” she said. “Good luck to you, Sun Warrior.” She glanced
back at Nelly. “And you.” And then she vanished.
Literally. Vanished. I stood
staring at the spot where she had been, blinking like a cartoon character. I
would have punched and kicked pointlessly at the air there if there had not
been other people in the room. No need to look as insane as I felt.
I turned on my sister. “What
happened?” I asked, for what felt like the
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